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Observations made by the Magellan spacecraft in the 1990s include signs of recent lava flows, highlighting possible exploration targets for probes heading to Venus in the 2030s

Observations made by the Magellan spacecraft in the 1990s include signs of recent lava flows, highlighting possible exploration targets for probes heading to Venus in the 2030s

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) This computer-generated 3D model of Venus’ surface shows the volcano Sif Mons, which is exhibiting signs of ongoing activity. Using data from NASA’s Magellan mission, Italian researchers detected evidence of an eruption while the spacecraft orbited the planet in the early 1990s.NASA/JPL-Caltech

An analysis of data from Magellan’s radar finds two volcanoes erupted in the early 1990s. This adds to the 2023 discovery of a different active volcano in Magellan data.

Direct geological evidence of recent volcanic activity on Venus has been observed for a second time. Scientists in Italy analyzed archival data from NASA’s Magellan mission to reveal surface changes indicating the formation of new rock from lava flows linked to volcanoes that erupted while the spacecraft orbited the planet. Managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, Magellan mapped 98% of the planet’s surface from 1990 to 1992, and the images it generated remain the most detailed of Venus to date.

“Using these maps as a guide, our results show that Venus may be far more volcanically active than previously thought,” said Davide Sulcanese of d’Annunzio University in Pescara, Italy, who led the study. “By analyzing the lava flows we observed in two locations on the planet, we have discovered that the volcanic activity on Venus could be comparable to that on Earth.”

This latest discovery builds on the historic 2023 discovery of images from Magellan’s synthetic aperture radar that revealed changes to a vent associated with the volcano Maat Mons near Venus’ equator. The radar images proved to be the first direct evidence of a recent volcanic eruption on the planet. By comparing Magellan radar images over time, the authors of the 2023 study spotted changes caused by the outflow of molten rock from Venus’ subsurface filling the vent’s crater and spilling down the vent’s slopes.

Scientists study active volcanoes to understand how a planet’s interior can shape its crust, drive its evolution, and affect its habitability. The discovery of recent volcanism on Venus provides a valuable insight to the planet’s history and why it took a different evolutionary path than Earth.

Before starting its journey to Venus, NASA’s Magellan spacecraft was released while in Earth orbit by Space Shuttle Atlantis’ STS-30 mission. Captured in this May 4, 1989, photo, Magellan was the first planetary spacecraft to be launched from the shuttle.NASA Radar Backscatter

For the new study, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, the researchers likewise focused on archival data from Magellan’s synthetic aperture radar. Radio waves sent by the radar traveled through Venus’ thick cloud cover, then bounced off the planet’s surface and back to the spacecraft. Called backscatter, these reflected radar signals carried information about the rocky surface material they encountered.

The two locations studied were the volcano Sif Mons in Eistla Regio and the western part of Niobe Planitia, which is home to numerous volcanic features. By analyzing the backscatter data received from both locations in 1990 and again in 1992, the researchers found that radar signal strength increased along certain paths during the later orbits. These changes suggested the formation of new rock, most likely solidified lava from volcanic activity that occurred during that two-year period. But they also considered other possibilities, such as the presence of micro-dunes (formed from windblown sand) and atmospheric effects that could interfere with the radar signal.

To help confirm new rock, the researchers analyzed Magellan’s altimetry (surface height) data to determine slope of the topography and locate obstacles that lava would flow around.

“We interpret these signals as flows along slopes or volcanic plains that can deviate around obstacles such as shield volcanoes like a fluid,” said study co-author Marco Mastrogiuseppe of Sapienza University of Rome. “After ruling out other possibilities, we confirmed our best interpretation is that these are new lava flows.”

Using flows on Earth as a comparison, the researchers estimate new rock that was emplaced in both locations to be between 10 and 66 feet (3 and 20 meters) deep, on average. They also estimate that the Sif Mons eruption produced about 12 square miles (30 square kilometers) of rock — enough to fill at least 36,000 Olympic-size swimming pools. The Niobe Planitia eruption produced about 17 square miles (45 square kilometers) of rock, which would fill 54,000 Olympic swimming pools. As a comparison, the 2022 eruption of Mauna Loa in Hawaii, Earth’s largest active volcano, produced a lava flow with enough material to fill 100,000 Olympic pools.

“This exciting work provides another example of volcanic change on Venus from new lava flows that augments the vent change Dr. Robert Herrick and I reported last year,” said Scott Hensley, senior research scientist at JPL and co-author of the 2023 study. “This result, in tandem with the earlier discovery of present-day geologic activity, increases the excitement in the planetary science community for future missions to Venus.”

Figuring Out Volcanoes

Hensley is the project scientist for NASA’s upcoming VERITAS mission, and Mastrogiuseppe is a member of its science team. Short for Venus Emissivity, Radio science, InSAR, Topography, And Spectroscopy, VERITAS is slated to launch early next decade, using a state-of-the-art synthetic aperture radar to create 3D global maps and a near-infrared spectrometer to figure out what Venus’ surface is made of while also tracking volcanic activity. In addition, the spacecraft will measure the planet’s gravitational field to determine its internal structure.

“These new discoveries of recent volcanic activity on Venus by our international colleagues provide compelling evidence of the kinds of regions we should target with VERITAS when it arrives at Venus,” said Suzanne Smrekar, a senior scientist at JPL and principal investigator for VERITAS. “Our spacecraft will have a suite of approaches for identifying surface changes that are far more comprehensive and higher resolution than Magellan images. Evidence for activity, even in the lower-resolution Magellan data, supercharges the potential to revolutionize our understanding of this enigmatic world.”

More About the Mission

NASA’s VERITAS mission was selected in 2021 under NASA’s Discovery Program. Mission partners include Lockheed Martin Space, the Italian Space Agency, the German Aerospace Center, and Centre National d’Études Spatiales in France. The Discovery Program is managed by the Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the Planetary Science Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

News Media Contacts

Ian J. O’Neill
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-2649
ian.j.oneill@jpl.nasa.gov

Karen Fox / Charles Blue
NASA Headquarters
202-358-1600 / 202-802-5345
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / charles.e.blue@nasa.gov

Giuseppina Piccirilli
Agenzia Spaziale Italiana
+39 06 85 67 431 / 887 / 655
stampa@asi.it

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Details Last Updated May 27, 2024 Related Terms

• Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Magellan
• Planetary Geosciences & Geophysics
• Planetary Science
• Planetary Science Division
• Venus
• VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography & Spectroscopy)
• Volcanoes

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The evidence is in: Venus is volcanically active.

The post Venus’s Volcanoes Live appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

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How can sunlight reflecting off SpaceX’s Starlink satellites interfere with ground-based operations? This is what a recently submitted study hopes to address as a pair of researchers investigate how Starlink satellites appear brighter—which the researchers also refer to as flaring—to observers on Earth when the Sun is at certain angles, along with discussing past incidents of how this brightness has influenced aerial operations on Earth, as well. This study holds the potential to help spacecraft manufacturers design and develop specific methods to prevent increased brightness levels, which would help alleviate confusion for observers on Earth regarding the source of the brightness and the objects in question.

Here, Universe Today discusses this research with Anthony Mallama of the IAU – Centre for the Protection of Dark and Quiet Skies from Satellite Constellation Interference regarding the motivation behind the study, significant results, potential follow-up studies, importance of studying Starlink satellite brightness, and implications for managing satellite constellations in the future. So, what was the motivation behind this study?

“I study the brightness of Starlink satellites under all circumstances,” Mallama tells Universe Today. “That includes their operational phase at 550 km [342 mi] altitude, when they are rising from the initial orbit around 300 km [186 mi] to operation height, ordinary flares which occur frequently but have small amplitudes and these extreme flares.”

For the study, the researchers conducted a geometrical analysis of the brightness of Starlink satellites based on the Sun’s location and angle in the sky. This comes despite SpaceX taking steps to mitigate reflectivity off Starlink satellites, which only decreases reflectivity when the satellites are directly overhead. The study also discussed how reflectivity from Starlink satellites has affected aerial operations, specifically with commercial airline pilots. Therefore, what were the most significant results from this study?

Mallama tells Universe Today, “This study demonstrated that Starlinks can be exceedingly bright under certain conditions. In one instance they were reported as Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon (UAP) by pilots on two commercial aircraft.”

Regarding potential follow-up studies, Mallama tells Universe Today, “I am characterizing the brightness of other satellite constellations including Amazon’s Kuiper, AST SpaceMobile’s BlueWalker/BlueBirds and Planet’s Pelicans.”

The study mentions how the UAP incidents occurred in 2022 and was recently discussed in Buettner et al (2024) with the pilots’ reporting brightness magnitudes (also called stellar magnitude or apparent magnitude) of -4 to -5. For context, a stellar magnitude of -5 is equivalent to the planet Venus at its brightest, which is known for being observed before sunrise or after sunset periodically throughout the year. The apparent magnitude scale ranges from -30 to 30 with higher numbers corresponding to decreasing brightness.

Buettner et al (2024) was recently presented at the 4th IAA Conference on Space Situational Awareness (ICSSA). That paper discussed how the incident occurred on August 10, 2022, and was observed by five pilots aboard two separate commercial airline flights over the Pacific Ocean, which resulted in two photographs obtained by the pilot’s cell phones. After analyzing a series of simulations and additional data, the researchers determined these UAPs were Starlink satellites launched earlier that day, which was designated as Starlink Group 4-26. Given this incident, what is the importance of studying Starlink brightness/flaring?

Mallama tells Universe Today, “The importance of studying Starlink brightness is that the satellites interfere with astronomical research if they are brighter than magnitude 7. Furthermore, casual sky watchers, such as amateur astronomers and naturalists, are distracted by those brighter than magnitude 6 because they are visible to the unaided eye.”

This study comes as SpaceX’s Starlink constellation continues to grow on a regular basis, with the number of current Starlink satellites in orbit have reached more than 5,600 with almost 6,000 having been launched by SpaceX as of this writing. As noted by both the study and Mallama, sunlight reflectivity off Starlink satellites causes issues with both aerial operations on Earth and astronomical observing, with Mallama also conducting research on satellite constellation brightness for Amazon, AST SpaceMobile, and Planet Labs. Therefore, with the number of satellites in orbit rapidly increasing due to constellations, what implications could this study have on managing satellite constellations in the future?

Mallama tells Universe Today, “One approach to reducing satellite brightness is to reflect sunlight into space rather than allowing it to scatter diffusively toward observers on the ground. That works very well most of the time. However, there are certain Sun-satellite-observer geometries where it fails and observers see a mirror-like reflection of the Sun.” Mallam published a 2023 article with Sky & Telescope discussing how SpaceX’s second-generation of Starlink satellites are fainter than their predecessors.

This diagram and artist illustration demonstrates how sunlight reflects off a Starlink version 1.5 satellite, and was discussed in a 2023 article authored by Anthony Mallama and published in Sky & Telescope. (Credit: SpaceX)

Mallama credits his co-author, Richard Cole, as playing a “crucial role” in this study, noting how Cole “predicted the extreme flares based on his numerical model of Starlink satellite brightness.”

How will sunlight reflectivity off Starlink satellites influence ground operations in the coming years and decades, and what steps can be taken to mitigate this activity? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!

As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!

The post Starlinks Can Produce Surprisingly Bright Flares to Pilots appeared first on Universe Today.